Stolen Summer (2002)

Yawn. Poorly Filmed Snooze Fest.

Very Cool!!!

Surprisingly incoherent and boring

The film never slows down or bores, plunging from one harrowing sequence to the next.

faith. fear. a mission. religions as bricks for two boys. and the need of Heaven. a touching film about ordinaries realities. nothing new. nothing strange. only exercise of a new vision about old things. and new form of Don Quijote adventure. sure, it is not extraordinary. boring - in few parts -, common, just pink. instrument of ecumenism. story about innocence and world of adults. but not colors are important. but nuances. a friendship, an ideal, a ladder for conquer the Heaven, Brian Dennehy as Father Kelly, Aidan Quinn as fireman and father of eight children, full of frustration, the boys on beach and the confession of faith.a movie like many others. but different in few aspects. like every man. like every family. like every religion.

This movie is beautifully written and simply acted, with wonderful performances from the child actors bringing it to life. It deals with subtle and complex issues of faith and love, parenting, friendship and flat-out chutzpah. The character of the Rabbi, played by Kevin Pollack, is a joy. Stolen summer explores what faith means in action and who's got it right. Done from a child's questioning point of view it gets in to and away with some very tough and unresolvable issues. The kids treat the notion of getting in to heaven, whose God is right, what happens when you die- all as things you can actually ask about, and think about. The result is heartfelt and up to the end, wrenching in its honesty.The final scene of the movie has absolutely no connection to the rest of story. Or rather, it seeks to tie up every single thread and gives you all those answers, revealing in the final two minutes the nature of prayer and the meaning of faith. Predictably it comes out as shallow and baffling. Where did the movie go? The actors are wrenched from any connection to any part of the story leading up to that moment and left doing a Hallmark card. The scene reeks of a desperate move to appeal to some research-specified demographic, the implausible act of an executive justifying his salary by telling the writer what the story needs. Up until the Advent of Executives, this is a lovely movie, and a great story.

This movie was one of the best movies that I have seen in a very long while. It was touching and very motivating. The two young boys in this film were fabulous actors and made the story so great. It was so easy to relate to the dynamics between the two families and to feel there pain and confusion. As a mother, I would want my children to be a part in viewing this movie in order to conjure up a open conversation about it's contents and morals. I would be concerned with anyone of any faith to not feel the same about this movie. Messages like the one presented in this movie are few and far between these days. I would recommend it for your whole family regardless of your ages or beliefs.

It's rare that a film like this comes along. Sometimes, they slip right by, and if you're lucky you get the chance to see them. This is one such film.Even after four years of it's debut, I'd never seen the film, and only remembered seeing one preview for it, before it came out on video. I recently had the opportunity to see it, and wasn't hesitant to watch it, but I assumed it would be worse than I'd anticipated, given the summary I read on this website. I was completely, and pleasantly wrong. This film touches you in so many ways, that it's hard to even find the words for how wonderful it really is. Throughout the whole movie, you are given opportunities of laughter, sadness and thought. The film circles around a nine year old boy, growing up in the 1950s, in a Catholic home with nine other siblings. His sweet and sympathetic mother, and limited to a high school diploma father, raise him and his brothers and sisters, with the faith that the church encourages. After being bullied somewhat, by one of the nuns at his all boys Catholic school, he decides in order to make her like him more, he will try to convert someone to Catholicsism, before the summer ends.He decides to make a free lemonade stand in front of a Jewish Synagauge, in order to tell people about Christ, and how they can get into heaven for "free". He befriends the Rabbi of the Synagauge (Pollak), and soon learns that his son has leukemia. From then on, he decides he will help convert the little boy, before he grows any sicker.It's an amazing movie, that will leave you feeling good, and secure. It has it's moments of tears, but the majority of the film is laughter, and thoughtfulness. I would recommend it to anyone and everyone, regardless of religion, or ethnicity, it's a film that everyone will enjoy, and I don't think anyone could honestly be offended by it. I loved it, and hope to see it again in the future.